Aerial vehicles, such as airplanes and helicopters, have traditionally been the vehicles of choice for search and rescue operations. In particular, aerial vehicles are often best suited for rescue operations conducted over vast and rugged terrain as well as over water because aerial vehicles may cover vast distances quickly using advanced instruments to search for and provide rescue services to those in need.
However, traditional aerial vehicles, such as helicopters, airplanes, and the like, are expensive to acquire, expensive to operate, require personnel for both maintenance and operation, and generally require special bases for deployment. For example, a helicopter cannot be deployed from just any ship at sea, it must be deployed from a ship designed for helicopter operations. This problem is even more remote for most airplanes because of the special equipment needed to launch and recover airplanes on the water. Moreover, the use of traditional aerial vehicles, such as airplanes and helicopters, poses risk to rescue personnel, particularly where the vehicle needs to go into inclement conditions, such as inclement weather or dangerous terrain (e.g. mountains). In some cases, the risk to the personnel and the equipment (given its high cost) is too substantial to deploy a rescue vehicle.
Until recently, alternatives to traditional aerial vehicles were not readily available to or not practical for search and rescue personnel. However, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as unmanned aerial systems (UASs), have become increasingly prominent and sophisticated. In particular, technological improvements in power sources, power management, control system electronics, communication systems, build materials, and manufacturing techniques, to list just a few, have enabled increasingly customized applications for such systems.
As described herein, a novel application for unmanned aerial systems is for search and rescue operations. Like traditional aerial vehicles, unmanned aerial systems are now capable of traveling long distances at high rates of speed, deploying advanced instruments, and providing direct action rescue services Unlike traditional aerial vehicles, however, unmanned aerial systems may accomplish all of these functions at lower cost of equipment, with less training, and with lower risk to rescue personnel. Accordingly, the following disclosure provides embodiments of unmanned aerial rescue systems.